Trump Signs Order Renaming Lake Ontario as Lake America

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday, August 27, 2026, directing the U.S. federal government to refer to Lake Ontario as "Lake America," a move that immediately drew rejection from Canadian officials and criticism from U.S. state leaders, further escalating a bitter trade dispute between the two nations. The order, signed during a ceremony in the Oval Office, instructs the Department of the Interior to update the Geographic Names Information System, the federal database that standardizes names for U.S. government use. The change applies only to federal documents, maps, and communications and does not compel Canada or international bodies to adopt the new name.